Thailand in shock after king’s death

By Max Constant

BANGKOK (AA) - Thailand is in shock after the death on Thursday of King Bhumibol Adulyadej, a towering figure whose 70-year reign was the longest of any Thai monarch and one of the most prestigious.

On Thursday, the Royal Household Bureau said in a televised announcement that the 88-year-old king died at 3 p.m. (0800GMT) in Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok where he had been almost continuously hospitalized since 2009.

He was also the world's longest reigning living monarch.

Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn, aged 64, is expected to ascend the throne to become the tenth monarch of the Chakri dynasty.

The king, who had been suffering from a range of ailments from regular lung infections to spinal cord problems, had been treated for several months with continued renal replacement therapy, which is usually used for patients with acute kidney problems.